Smithtown Kicks Off $5M Road Overhaul on Edgewood Avenue

Smithtown highway crews pushed into the final phase of a multi-year Edgewood Avenue rebuild this week, completing milling operations and starting full paving between Route 25A and River Road in what town officials are calling the most consequential road project in Smithtown in more than two decades.

The work is the last segment of a corridor-wide reconstruction that, when finished, will give Edgewood Avenue a completely new surface from Jericho Turnpike at the south end to North Country Road at the north. The route carries daily commuters between the Long Island Expressway interchange and the north shore's Route 25A business strip, moving thousands of vehicles through central Smithtown every weekday.

Congressman Nick LaLota secured $5 million for the project through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, covering Smithtown's Pavement Rehabilitation and Infrastructure Renewal Project. The funding was part of a $15 million federal infrastructure package for Smithtown and neighboring Huntington, plus restoration work at a Kings Park landmark — the largest combined federal infrastructure allocation for the two towns in more than a decade, LaLota's office said.

The Highway Department is running two work fronts simultaneously. One crew is paving Edgewood between Route 25A and River Road, with the segment from River Road north to North Country Road scheduled to follow in sequence. A second crew is working Landing Avenue from the railroad crossing south over the Edgewood intersection to the bridge. Both operations use staged lane closures during off-peak hours. No full detour is required on either road.

Town officials said the project schedule accelerated after consecutive severe winters in 2024 and 2025 pushed the corridor well ahead of its projected replacement threshold. Freeze-thaw cycling compromised the sub-base in multiple sections, converting surface cracking into structural issues that patching could no longer hold. Highway engineers flagged Edgewood as a federal-aid priority in 2024, triggering LaLota's appropriations request.

Residents who commute Edgewood regularly noticed the difference. On the Smithtown-Kings Park community Facebook group, residents began posting updates as milling started last week. Several flagged the rough patches near the River Road crossing — one commenter called it "patches on patches on patches" — and noted the surface was already smoother once the old material was milled down. Final paving will eliminate the remaining unevenness.

The current phase follows earlier segments that addressed drainage upgrades, curb repairs and sub-base work along the corridor before this season's finishing layer. When the final paving closes — projected for early July, weather permitting — Edgewood from Route 25 to Route 25A will carry its first complete new surface since the early 2000s, finishing a multi-phase investment that began with drainage and base repairs in 2023.

LaLota's office said the $5 million came through a competitive appropriations process requiring Smithtown to submit detailed engineering assessments, cost documentation and a project timeline in 2024. Competitive appropriations typically run 12 to 18 months from submission to funding confirmation, meaning the town committed engineering resources before construction was formally secured.

Smithtown is also transitioning to a digital beach and park access system this summer. Traditional windshield stickers are being replaced by a Smart Pass linked to vehicle license plates, with a $5 processing fee per vehicle managed through the town's website at smithtownny.gov. Officials said the change cuts the spring sticker-pickup rush at Town Hall and reduces annual waste from unused stickers — a small quality-of-life adjustment that affects every Smithtown resident who uses town beaches each summer.

The 2026 roadwork schedule extends to streets in all six Smithtown hamlets — Smithtown, Kings Park, Nissequogue, St. James, Commack and Hauppauge — funded through federal appropriations, state aid and local bond proceeds. Secondary corridors will begin in sequence after the Edgewood phase closes. Updates are posted on the town's website and through the Highway Department notification list.